A lot has changed with me and food over the past 6 months. Since becoming a mother food as taken on a whole new meaning and role in my life.

After giving birth to our son Alby my energy levels plummeted and something needed to change. I didn’t feel this after the birth of our daughter Edie, so I was worried. I turned to food to help heal me and restock my depleted energy levels.

I really wanted to share with you some simple recipes and tips that have been working for me. I feel as though energy is something we all want more of, and these tips could help you on your own journey.

First things first – I am not a dietician, or a shady guru. This is about nutrient dense food. I’m simply sharing my recipes and routine which is working for me, and perhaps it may work for you too.

As they say  ‘a proper breakfast is the foundation upon which a great day is built’, so much so breakfast has become the most important meal of our day. We start most mornings like this, chopping vegetables and cracking eggs together.

 When you prioritise food you see life so differently.  So much so we now dedicate Sundays just to food. Going to the market, cooking and eating together as a family.

I want to show our children that by having a close relationship with nutrient dense food it’s a fundamental part of being a human, it’s primal and it’s really exciting!

When I was pregnant with Alby I developed gestational diabetes. Apparently when you are pregnant it’s like looking into your future, like a crystal ball, whatever ailments or problems you experience while pregnant will be problems you will have in later life.

I didn’t think I had a bad diet (looking back with what I know now it wasn’t great), so hearing I had gestational diabetes was a huge surprise and to be honest I felt gutted. I saw a dietician throughout my pregnancy to protect my unborn baby and was able to ride the diabetes wave quite well with my dietician’s support and changing my diet. Once Alby was born the diabetes disappeared and I went back to pre-pregnancy normality. Like magic.

Except for those first 4 or so months after giving birth to Alby I was really struggling with energy levels, something I hadn’t ever experienced before. I was so foggy and I just couldn’t keep up.

I actually convinced myself I had diabetes for real and booked myself in for tests to look into it. Alas, no, my results were all fine. Which was a relief, but then puzzled me as to what on earth was going on with me.

Looking back I was breastfeeding two babies and life had picked up some substantial pace, though I just felt my body was craving more nutrients.

So that’s what I did, I listened to my body and gave it what it was craving.

This is what my routine looks like now:

I wake at 5am, let’s be straight here, this isn’t intentional, it’s because of the babies.

I drink water to hydrate my organs after a nights sleep. About 3 – 4 glasses.

 I will flick the switch on the kettle and where I would have made myself a mug of tea, I now make a mug of powder bone broth.  I love this part of the morning, it feels really nurturing and nourishing, something just for me. I use this one here.

I love to jam pack greens into our breakfast now, bring on those green vegetables!  But things have to be real quick, as we need to get out the door. I’ll grab two zucchinis and a bunch of rainbow chard from the fridge. Any seasonal green leafy vegetable will work, spinach, bok choy, Warrigal greens etc, if it’s green grab it.

I heat up the frypan with a little olive oil or coconut oil, then grate the zucchinis and chop the greens. If the greens have a large vein, I’ll remove the vein first, then chop the vein up finely and add that to the fry pan first to fry for a little longer so it softens.

I’ll then add the chopped leafy part and the grated zucchini. Make sure you always sauté your leafy greens, some greens are high in oxalates and you need to add heat to reduce oxalates.

I’ll then crack 4 medium sized free range eggs into a small bowl, whisk and then pour into the frypan onto the greens. I’ll move the greens around with a wooden spoon to make sure they are all getting some eggy goodness on them, then around 5 mins later breakfast is ready.

I’ll serve the eggs with half an avocado on the side and some home made basil oil. I make this in advance, usually on Sundays. The basil oil is simple and you will find yourself reaching for it to put on everything.

It’s just a bunch of basil, kale, a clove of garlic and pinch of sea salt, with a cup or so of olive oil, thrown in the blender until smooth.

 Once blended I pour this into a couple of old glass jars and keep it in the fridge. I usually give my mum the extra jar. I really do use this on everything – baked veggies at night, on wraps for lunch during the day, on grilled fish, you name it, I’ll bring out the basil oil. One batch lasts about a week. I find these jars really helpful.

I have also been using kelp flakes to reduce our salt intake. In our salt mill I now have half sea salt and half kelp all mixed in together. I also add hemp seeds, which are rich in healthy fats, to just about anything (best friends with the basil oil).

I buy a turmeric tonic from the markets I go to. It has turmeric, filtered water, ginger, galangal and black pepper in it. You can make this yourself, or you an also find a powder version you can add water to.  It’s best to drink this throughout your meal to help digestion. She is sharp, but we love it.

On the weekend I make a batch of cold press green juice for the week ahead. I’ll juice 4 bunches of celery, 8 green apples and 8 cucumbers in my juicer and I’ll store this in glass bottles with a lid. This is a lot, you could quarter this amount, but we absolutely live for this juice and have it everyday.

I’ll then chop some fruit. It’s important to always have fruit as a secondary meal, never the first thing on an empty tummy. Or else you will be riding a glucose wave of ups and downs.

How do I feel now?

The fog has lifted and I have energy, clarity and feel creative again. I don’t feel overwhelmed and I’m not as snappy with those I love the most, which is actually really important.

Overall I feel so much more happier, in control and present with what’s happening around me. My biggest tip would be by making things in advance it really does make the weekday shuffle a lot smoother and you are more likely to make healthy decisions.

By making food a priority you really do see life so differently.

Kara x

P.S: You won’t want to miss next week’s blog post – I’m releasing a vintage collection! Think woven trays, beautiful French fish plates, stacked cane mirrors and more.

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